The 1995 RTE Network 2 Idents

Back in the mid-90s, Ireland had all of two (yes, two) TV stations: RTÉ 1 and Network 2. The former was the more conservative station, broadcasting the news and current affairs programmes, whereas the latter was more geared towards light entertainment and the younger crowd.

For years, they had this ident that beggars belief.

Then again, it was from the late 80s when Ireland was even more broke than it is now.

In 1995, a new station identity was created (info on the creators can be found here) that was refreshingly simple in its execution. Taking the elementary colours from the previous identity and transforming them into the four elements of water, earth, fire and air (see, I got the cycle right), the idents were a substantial improvement over what went before. To top off the animation, there is also very distinctive sounds that (in my humble opinion) are comparable to the famous THX Deep Note.

Unfortunately, these only lasted for two years (1995-1997) but despite being 18 years old, they manage to hold up extremely well. They would not look very out of place if they were broadcast today.